The St. Marks Lighthouse is located about 25 miles south of Tallahassee near the coastal town of St. Marks. The original lighthouse was built in 1831, but erosion forced it to be rebuilt in its current location in 1842. During the Civil War, it was heavily damaged by Confederate forces when they tried to blow it up to prevent Union troops from using it as a lookout when they came ashore after blockading Apalachee Bay. After the war, it was rebuilt again and relit in 1867. The lighthouse was operated by light keepers until 1960 when it became automated. In 1974, the St. Marks Lighthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and in 2000, the US Coast Guard installed a modern solar powered light. On the day we visited, the lighthouse was closed, so I was unable to get pictures of the inside.
16 comments:
Interesting post Lois, greetings, Karl
An interesting history and beautiful restored.
Gosh, I just love lighthouses. This is a pretty one. The whitewash goes well with the palm trees.
Beautiful lighthouse. They always have interesting histories.
Darryl and Ruth : )
I like your first shot with the lighthouse peeking above the trees!
Beautiful shots Lois! I've always loved this old lighthouse. It's got character.
What a history it has! Glad it's still around.
Wonderful composition on top and great information too. Lighthouses are fascinating!
I've seen photos of this before. Looks so interesting. And the history is interesting, too. It's really not funny, but there is some humor in the fact that many times in war, one side will try to blow something up to keep the other side from using it and botch the job!
Beautiful picture and nice to know the history behind it too.
Lighthouses are so interesting. Always nice when action is taken to restore and maintain those historic ones. Nice post. Have a lovely weekend. Mickie :)
Lighthouses are always fun to visit! We've seen several in Door County, Wisconsin!
Something about lighthouses, especially one like this that has a lot of history.
Can't ever pass up a photo of a lighthouse since I was born in a small town on the shore of Lake Michigan in WI. I can still hear the mournful tones of the foghorn.
I'm another lighthouse lover.
How gorgeous, Lois...I particularly love the perspective on the second-to-last picture! Lighthouses have always charmed me...I am sorry so few of them are manned and maintained in the old ways. I guess that serves to show I'm also past my prime, doesn't it? LOL!
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